Bookmark



Patented Nov. 28, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE This invention relates to a book mark and has for its chief object to/provide a device which may be easily and quickly attached to and removed from one of the covers of a book and having means to overlie a leaf of such book and thus to serve both as a marker for indicating the page of the book at which a person has ceased reading the book and to hold such page against being turned while being read, which means may nevertheless be caused, by the turning of the page which it overlies, to move out of the way of such leaf or page andlwill thereafter be caused to automatically engagethe succeeding leaf or page.

The device in its preferred form comprises 7 a clip to straddle one of the covers of a book,

an arm carried by suchclipto extend substantiallyparallel to and obliquely of the upper edges of thepagesoftheboohandafinger flexibly connected toV sucharm to overlie a leaf or page of -the book,V which-ranger, on mint of its flexible connection to the arm, may be caused, by the turning of the leaf or page which it overlies, to swing out of overlying relation to said page and then be caused, by its weight and its flexible connection to the arm, to swing back into position to overlie the next succeeding leaf or page of the book.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the invention and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the book mark;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of an open book having the book mark attached thereto;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 wherein one of the pages of the book is shown as being turned and moving the leaf-engaging finger out of the way of such page.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a closed book having the book mark applied thereto and with the page-engaging nnger positioned over the page at which the reading of the book was discontinued, and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of fragmentary portions of the arm and the finger or index of the book mark.

The device comprises a clasp, generally designated as 2, preferably made of sheet spring steel bentrinto substantially U-shape, as at 4, to form 50 front and rear clamping jaws 5 and 6. The jaws 5 and 6 are constantly urged toward one another by their connecting portion 4. The clasp 2 is adapted to straddle the upper edge of the rear cover 3 of a book, preferably near the free or outer edge of the cover, as shown in Figures 2,

3and4. Thejawoiswiderthanthejaw, and carries, adjacent the connecting portion 4, a lug 'I which extends substantially at a right angle to said jaw.

An arm 9` is pivotally connected at one of its 30 ends,asat8,tothelug7,'toswingonanaxis substantially parallel to the jaws 5 and 6 and has a portion 10 adapted, when the jaws 5' and 6 straddle the back cover of the book, to lie along the upper edges of the pages of the book obliquely to such edges.

The opposite end of the portion 10 of the arm 9 is connected to one end of a flexible member 13, shown as a cylindrical spring having one end 12 surrounding and frictionally engaging a nipple 70 11 extending from said end. The other end 14 of the flexible member 13 'is connected to a leafengaging finger 17, said end being shown as surrounding and frictionally engaging a nipple 15 on one end of said nger. The finger 17 is curved between its ends as at'116. `Since the leaf-engaging iinger is vcurved between its ends, the yfree terminal portion thereof is normally disposed at' an angle to the axis of the arm 9 and in a plane substantially parallel to the jaws 5 and 6 of the 30 clip 2.

When the device is applied to the rear cover of the book with the clasp 2 straddling the upper edge of the cover and its jaws 5 and 6 frictionally engaging the opposite sides of the cover adjacent the 'free side edge thereof, the arm 9 and flexible member 13 will be disposed adjacent to the upper edges of the pages of the book and obliqueLv thereto, and the free terminal portion of the finger 17 will overlie the upper portion of a 90 page of the book adjacent the back of the book, with the edge of said page disposed in the curve 16 of said iinger'as shown in Figures 2 and 4. The resiliency of the iiexible member 13 and the weight of the anger 1'1 are aimaient to narmauy 95 maintain the finger 17 in engagement with the leaf of the book which said finger overlies and the flexible member 13 is resilient enough to be twisted axially and to then be flexed laterally by the turning of the leaf of the book engaged by the linger 1'7, so that during the turning movement of such leaf the leaf will first lift the finger 1'7 in the direction in which the leaf is turned and then ride along and deflect said finger until its edge rides past the free end of the finger, whereupon the weight of the nger 17 and the iiexible member 13 will swing the iinger 1'7- back into position to overlie the next page of the book.

I claim:

1. A book mark, comprising a member for attachment to one cover of a book, an arm connected at one of its ends to said member to extend substantially parallel to certain edges of the leaves of such book, a exible member having one oi its ends connected to the other end of said arm, said exible member forming a normally coaxial continuation oi said arm, and a finger carried by the other end oi' said flexible y ward'the cover of the book to which the ilrstmember, said iinger having a portion bent laterally of said ilexible member and urged by said flexible member in a direction toward the cover oi' the book to which the ilrst named member is attached.

2. A book mark comprising a member for attachment to a cover of a book, an arm including ing a rigid portion connected to said member'and an elastic portion normally extending in axial alinement with said rigid portion, and a ilnger extending from said elastic portion to overlie a page oi' the book and yieldingly urged by said elastic portion toward the cover oi' the book to which the mst-named member is attached.

3. A book mark comprising a member for attachment to a cover of a book, a rigid arm connected at one end to said member to extend past certain edges of the leaves o1' such book, a spiral spring having one of its ends connected to the other end oi' said arm and normally extending in axial alinement' with said arm, and a iinger extending from the other end of said spiral spring, said nger having a portion bent at an angle to the axis of said spring to contact with a page of the book and yieldingly urged by said spring tonamed member is attached.

4. A book mark comprising a member for attachment to a cover of a book, a rigid arm movably connected at one of its ends to said member ior adjustment into a position obliquely of certain edges of the pages of the book, an elastic member secured at one of its ends to 'the other end of said rigid arm and normally extending inaxial alinement with said rigid arm, and a finger bent between its ends and extending from the other end of said elastic member and yieldingly urged by said elastic member toward the cover to which the irst-named member is secured with its bend over the edge of a page of the book and its terminal portion overlyingsuch page.

5. A book mark comprising a member for attachment to a cover of a book, a rigid arm, means connecting one end of said arm to said member for adJustment about an axis substantially parallel to the pages of the book, said means holding said arm portion against turning movement about its longitudinal axis and also against movement away from said edges o1' the pages, a spiral spring fixed at one of its ends to the other end of said rigid arm and normally extending in axial alinement with said arm, and a finger secured at one of its ends to the other end of said spiral spring and having its terminal portion disposed at an angle to the axis of said spring to normally overlie a page of the book, said spiral spring yieldingly holding the terminal portion of the nger 4in contact with a page of the book and constantly urging it toward the cover to which said member is secured.

ERNEST SCOGNABULLO.

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